The Black Line Continues
by GoldenHelikaon
Summary: AU. Slash. Mpreg. SBRL. Sirius never fell, but he was seriously injured at the end of OotP. While at Grimmauld Place, the trio notice a couple of new things have been threaded onto the Black Family Tapestry and it involves Remus.
1. Magical Tapestry

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The Black Line Continues

Disclaimer: I don't own much, except for the concept…hopefully… Wish I owned Siri and Rem.

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Summary: AU. Slash. Mpreg. SB/RL. Sirius never fell, but he was seriously injured at the end of OotP. While at Grimmauld Place, the trio notice a couple of new things have been threaded onto the Black Family Tapestry and it involves Remus.

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Warnings: See summary. **Order of the Phoenix spoilers, if you haven't read that or don't like any of the warning I have given then don't read this. And _don't_ say I didn't warn you.**

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Pairing(s): Sirius/ Remus, I haven't written a pairing involving these boys for ages.

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The events at the _Department of Mysteries _will be modified for this story.

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Chapter 1:_ Magical Tapestry_

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"Ha ha! Is that the best you've got Bellatrix?"

"Crucio!"

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"SIRIUS!"

Remus Lupin jerked awake, wide eyed and sweating, his breathing was heavier and seeing such a vivid account of that memory made him feel sick to the stomach. He had been having the same reoccurring nightmare for days now, ever since the battle at the _Department of Mysteries._ No amount of _Sleeping Draughts_ or _Dreamless Sleep Potions_ would help, no matter how strong Snape made them but the thought of falling asleep and not knowing what was happening with Sirius made it worse on him.

He tried to calm his breathing down before getting out of bed, he pulled on a sweatshirt and headed out into the hallway, the torches along the walls were dying down and its was getting very dim, as it was very early in the morning. The exhausted werewolf padded slowly along the hallway, being as quiet as he could as he passed the covered painting of Sirius' horrible mother, and then he headed downstairs to the basement kitchen. He was thirsty, he was tired and he felt absolutely awful, though he had been feeling quite off for the last couple of weeks and he still wasn't sure why.

Remus entered the kitchen and found Harry sitting in there staring miserably down at a mug of what smelt to him like hot chocolate, "You all right, Harry?"

Harry smirked humourlessly, "No…"

Remus got himself a drink and sat down opposite Harry at the table, "I know, stupid question, right?"

"Was a bit."

Remus sighed; he had been so caught up in feeling sorry for himself because his lover was on his deathbed that he had almost forgotten about the other people Sirius' injuries would affect. "He'll be alright."

Harry finally looked up at his old Professor, he took into account that Remus looked even worse for wear than usual, "How can you be so sure? I mean…the Longbottoms lost their sanity when Bellatrix tortured them…what if that happens to Sirius to? …Assuming he wakes up…"

Remus frowned, "You may not have noticed while it was happening, Harry, but Sirius wasn't under the _Cruciatus Curse_ for long. Bellatrix lifted it after only a couple of minutes…" He hated having to think about this, he felt even worse now because he was telling this to Sirius' godson. Harry gazed at him curiously. "I don't know what she used, probably one of Voldemort's own inventions…but whatever it was, it was that that did the damage to Sirius, not the _Torture Curse."_

Harry gazed back down at the table and squeezed his eyes shut for a moment before opening them again and looking back to Remus, "If it was something Voldemort came up with then…then wouldn't Snape know what it was?"

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"Professor Snape." Reminded Remus, more out of habit than anything. "And no he doesn't, Voldemort only tells his most trustworthy Death Eaters about things like that, so they can test the curses. Bellatrix being one of the most trusted and also Lucius Malfoy…"

Harry sniffed, "I don't want him to die…"

"Neither do I, Harry…neither do I." Replied Remus sadly; he gazed at the chair at the table that Sirius usually sat on. The one he always precariously leaned back onto two legs, which annoyed Molly greatly. Just as he was about to speak, he felt some bile come up in his mouth causing him to retch.

"Remus?"

Remus quickly jumped to his feet and ran to the nearest bathroom to throw up.

………

Sirius was being kept in the Hogwarts Infirmary because he was still an unwanted man, so he was unable to be treated at St Mungos by a group of Healers. Madame Pomfrey had been convinced by Dumbledore of Sirius' innocence and she had agreed to stay at Hogwarts over the summer to treat the injured and comatose Animagus.

After his morning's vomiting episode, Remus had had a shower and drank down half a pot of tea before heading off to Hogwarts so he could check in on Sirius.

There was still no change. Sirius had been unconscious for two weeks now, hanging on to his life by a thread. Nobody, not even Dumbledore knew what other curses Bellatrix had used on him while everyone else was busy duelling and subduing the other Death Eaters.

Another reason he had come to the Infirmary today was to find out what was wrong with him, why he was throwing up every morning. And by god did Madame Pomfrey's diagnosis shock him; he hadn't even thought it possible. Snape had walked into the Infirmary just as Remus had been told and the man became even more insufferable than usual, he had been positively gleeful to hear that Remus was in fact pregnant with _The Mutt's spawn._

Remus was sitting in a chair beside Sirius' bed now, running his thumb over the back of one of the dark haired man's pale hands, "Did you hear that Pads?" he asked Sirius' prone form quietly. Madame Pomfrey had said that Sirius might be able to hear if he spoke to him. "I'm carrying your baby…"

…

Meanwhile Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny had all been ordered to clean up the Drawing Room again as it had become rather messy again, mainly due to Kreacher being left entirely alone one day.

"Ew, what the heck is this?" Asked Ginny as she used a pair of tongs to pick up something brown and mouldy.

Ron shrugged, "What did that bloody house-elf do to this place? It was _clean_ when we were here at Christmas."

Hermione huffed; "God only knows…" She was busy trying to scrape something off the floor beneath the tapestry, which held the Black Family Tree. "I give up trying to be nice to that house-elf."

Ron raised an eyebrow in amusement at her before glancing at Harry who was smirking a little, "Good to know."

Ginny giggled, "Guess you wouldn't be against him having his head stuck to the wall with his relatives now, eh?"

"Damn right." Muttered Hermione, she stopped scrubbing for a moment and gazed up at the Family Tree, "You know, I think it would be quite interesting to trace your family back for centuries, I'd love to do that and see who my ancestors were."

Harry nodded, "You would…I wouldn't mind doing that either."

Hermione wiped her brow and went back to scrubbing, but she stopped dead and snapped her eyes back to the tapestry, "Oh my god…" She had seen this just before but it hadn't registered until just now.

"What?" Asked Ginny from where she had sat down in the middle of the floor.

Hermione gazed at the tapestry for a moment longer before finally replying, "This family tree must be magic or something…I think it adds to itself every time a Black reproduces."

"Why d'ya say that?" Questioned Ron curiously.

Hermione pointed to where Sirius' name had been burnt off the tree, "Come and see for yourselves."

The other three teenagers got up sluggishly and went over to the tapestry, upon seeing what Hermione was pointing to they all gasped in shock.

"Bloody hell!"

Harry blinked.

"…I always thought there was something going on there…" Said Ginny slowly.

Linked to Sirius' burnt off name in gold thread was _Remus Lupin_ and joined to both of their names was the word _Unborn._

Hermione glanced at the other three, "One of them is pregnant…" she said quietly.

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A/N: How was that? Everything happened a bit quickly but it doesn't matter.

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Next Chapter: Hermione is voted (by her friends) to approach Remus about what the tapestry says.


	2. Pleasant Dream

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The Black Line Continues

Disclaimer: Again, I wish I owned Rem and Siri but I don't. And I think I own the idea of the Magical tapestry instead of a dormant non-magical one.****

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Marauders Gal: Hey Em, glad you liked it…_wow…_ He he, I'll try not to give you a reason to hunt me down with a war hammer.

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Kuri Raikou: He he, glad you like it! Oh yeah, Remus would probably take being pregnant far better than most men.

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Cutieak88: Thank you!

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ThouandI: Ha, oh yes, my creative juices are back in overdrive again, now that school is almost back. Ah, more Black Tapestries? Good question, you never know.

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The-mpreg-spirit: Thanks for reviewing!

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Shounen-ai no Senshi: He he, glad you like it!

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Legolas19: Glad you loved it!

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HappyDappyDrunk: Thanks for reviewing! I like your name by the way **:-P**

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Padfoot n' Moony: Sure will!

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Eric2: Glad you think so **:-D**

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Prongs fan: Thank you!

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Lara Black: Oh god, I loathe what happened in the _Department of Mysteries,_ I bawl my eyes out every time I read that bit and it chokes me up just thinking about it. We all love Paddy! I'll try not to take too long to update.

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MissMe: Thank you!

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Ginny-and-Draco-fan: Ha ha, I'm wondering what Remus and Hermione are going to say as well.

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Sweet Mercy: I'm sorry I left it there, but I wanted to upload it as quickly as possible!

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Max: Thank you!

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xbreakawayx: Thank you!

**Jadwiga:** Ah, thank you for pointing out that mistake. I am such an idiot for not seeing that. But thanks for reviewing! ****

MishapsErrors: Thank you!

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Eve27: Thank you! I'm glad you like it!

Woot! I love you guys! Thanks for all your feedback on the first chapter!!

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Warning: There will be **OoCness** from several people and you will also see something that I have done in another story as well.

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Chapter 2:_ Pleasant Dream_

"And what pray tell is my Moony doing out of my bed and down here at this ungodly hour of the morning?" Whispered Sirius into his lover's ear after he entered the kitchen. They were both alone in Twelve Grimmauld Place, much to Sirius' delight.

Remus smirked, "Your Moony could not sleep and remembered he was supposed to do something yesterday, but you, my dear Padfoot, stopped him from doing so."

Sirius gave his most charming grin, "You liked it though."

"I don't deny that." Replied Remus; he ran a hand through his hair. "But it would have been nice to finish my work before you jumped me."

Sirius plopped down on the chair next to Remus, he turned the werewolf's face to his and attacked the other man's mouth with his own, and he could feel Remus melt into him almost straight away. When he finally broke away he gave a lopsided smile, "Come back to bed, please?"

Remus made a small disgruntled kind of noise, "Si, I have to do this at some point, Dumbledore wants it at lunchtime."

Sirius slumped his shoulders slightly, "But its five in the morning…"

Remus turned back to his work, very conscious of the pleading look his lover was giving him now, "I'll come and join you as soon as I'm done." He could practically hear Sirius put on his best puppy eyes. "Sirius."

"Yes?"

Remus determinedly kept his eyes on his Order work, "Go away."

"But Remmie…"

"But Siri…"

"Are you mocking me?"

Remus smirked, "Of course I am." He finally looked back to Sirius and saw the puppy eyes there again, "Oh for Merlin's sake…fine." He pressed his lips back to Sirius' briefly. "That's my promise for what's to come." Sirius grinned smugly. "When_ I have finished my work."_

Sirius huffed, "You're so cruel."

Remus rolled his eyes, "Yes Sirius, I am. I am the nastiest person you know."

"Damn right."

"But that's only because you know you'll be deprived of sex if I so choose it." Continued Remus in amusement. Sirius pouted. "Cry baby."

"Meany."

"Mutt."

"Meow."

Remus raised an eyebrow, "I think you need to work on your animal noises."

Sirius put his chin on Remus' shoulder and nuzzled his lover's neck; "Mmhmm…but it'd be easier if you were there with me to help…I find it much easier to concentrate if my teacher is good looking."

Remus snorted, "Charmer."

Sirius nipped his neck, "I know."

Remus grumbled, "God you're a nuisance…I should have you neutered."

Sirius pulled away from the brown haired man abruptly, he looked quite worried, "Don't you dare."

"Go back to bed."

Sirius huffed again and got up, "You're so mean."

"You love it."

"Do not."

"Do too."

Sirius stopped at the door and gave Remus another charming smile, "Course I do."

Remus opened his eyes and gazed up at the ceiling of his room at Twelve Grimmauld Place a small smile on his face. Sirius could be so annoying sometimes but he was a loveable nuisance and he was greatly missed already. Sirius was still alive, yes, but if he didn't wake up soon then god knows what could happen and that scared Remus even more now than it had nearly fifteen years ago when he had thought Sirius might die if he helped protect the Potters. Remus didn't want his baby to only have one parent around, especially if that one parent was a werewolf as well…

The brief bit of happiness his daydream had caused had lifted by now, Remus sat up and hugged his knees to his chest while gazing around the room. He didn't want to do this alone, he needed Sirius there with him, but if that couldn't happen then he needed someone's help. He knew he had to tell someone, Dumbledore or Molly even, he didn't want anyone to find out when he started showing, they needed to know now. Another thing that worried him a little was the _Black Family Tapestry _in the Drawing Room. He had noticed it had changed a little this morning when he had been in the room, it now had his own name on it linked with Sirius' and a gold thread leading to the word _Unborn._

Somehow that Tapestry could magically add every time a Black reproduced, he remembered Sirius telling him that once when they were at school. They had been joking about getting each other pregnant and Sirius had said _'It'd give my parents a shock if that happened, bloody tapestry always knows when someone in my family is expecting…'._

Remus frowned, what if the other Blacks that were still around had similar family trees? Narcissa and Bellatrix, or Andromeda even. What if they found out he was pregnant? And he couldn't trust Kreacher either, what if that blasted house-elf went and delivered the news of something like that to Narcissa? He had heard at an Order meeting from Severus that she was very angry now that her husband was in Azkaban, of course, the Order knew Lucius would be out soon but she didn't. There was no saying what she would do if she were pushed.

The Blacks were notorious for having nasty tempers, Sirius included.

………

Remus was sitting in the Drawing Room reading one of the many old leather bound Dark Arts books that he had found while perusing the Black family library. He had skipped on dinner, earning himself a disapproving glare of Molly and a comment that _he was skinny enough as it is even with food in him._ It wasn't his fault, well, it kind of was, it wasn't like Sirius had gotten him pregnant alone.

As he gazed blankly at the pages of a detailed book about the Unforgivables and their effects on people, Remus heard the door creak open, he half expected it to be Kreacher so he made sure there was something handy to throw. But it was Hermione. "Good evening."

Hermione smiled nervously, "Hi…"

Remus raised an eyebrow in minor amusement, you didn't often see Hermione Granger so nervous, the girl was a firecracker when she wanted to be. "Can I help?"

Hermione nodded and hesitated before she started speaking, "Well…its just…when we were cleaning up this room the other day…we eh, we noticed something on the Tapestry…" She trailed off when she Remus nod knowingly.

Remus sighed, "Yes, I thought someone might see that before I had a chance to say anything." Hermione raised her eyebrows questioningly and he could see why several people had told him they thought Hermione was almost exactly like he had been when he was at school. Always eager to learn something new, and a bit too nosy for his own good. "I suppose you're wondering which one of us is pregnant, right?"

Hermione tried to look nonchalant about it but it was obvious she was wondering, "Well, if…if you want to tell me…"

Remus smiled slightly, "I am. Now in the future, if you and your friends want to know what goes on in Sirius' bedroom, you should all come and ask, instead of singling someone out to do it."

Hermione's eyes widened slightly, "How did you-"

"I didn't." Remus smiled at her shocked look, "It was just a guess."

"Oh…" Hermione then brightened up a little. "So, if we all come and ask, you'll give us the sordid tales of sleeping with the one and only Sirius Black?"

Remus laughed, "No, no, I think I'll keep those details to myself, thank you. But I may be willing to answer some of your questions."

Hermione grinned, "Great." She turned to leave. "Oh and congratulations, by the way."

Remus smiled, "Thank you."

After Hermione had gone, Remus sat back in his chair and gazed at the Black Family Tree. Well, if the kids knew about his pregnancy it probably wouldn't take long for everyone else to find out, especially if Severus had opened his mouth about it after he walked into the hospital wing.

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A/N: Ok, so the Hermione asking Remus about the pregnancy thing was a bit short lived, but I'm quite happy with this chapter.

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Next Chapter: An unexpected member of the Order shows up for the latest meeting and Sirius shows some signs of recovering. _Will take place near the end of August so Rem is about two months pregnant._


	3. Recovering

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The Black Line Continues

Disclaimer: Same as the last two chapters, I wish I owned certain guys but sadly, I don't.

There are too many reviews to answer individually so I will say _thank you_ now. THANK YOU! I'm glad you all like this story.

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A/N: I forgot to mention this earlier on, though you probably figured it out if you've read _Late One Night, _werewolves in my stories don't transform while they're pregnant.

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Chapter 3:_ Recovering_

Remus was about two months pregnant now and his fortnightly check up with Poppy Pomfrey was just drawing to a close. The Hogwarts Matron had insisted on checking on him every fortnight because it wasn't often that werewolves got pregnant, especially male ones, and because Poppy had always liked him, she wanted to make sure everything was going well with him. But she had also called him to the school this evening because there had been a big improvement in Sirius' condition.

Remus sat on the edge of the bed in the Infirmary after his check up and the potion he had had to drink, "So, what is it that you wanted to tell me about Sirius?"

"Ah yes," Poppy pulled back the curtain from around Sirius' bed, "He made quite a sudden recovery last night." Remus raised his eyebrows in question. "He woke up, he wasn't awake for long but I was able to run a few tests on him before he lost consciousness again. He is doing far better than he has been recently."

Remus let out the breath he hadn't realised he had been holding in relief, "Do you think he'll wake up again anytime soon? I mean, if he does before school starts back, he could be transferred back to his house, right?"

Poppy nodded, "Yes, Sirius could be transferred, _but_ I would prefer it if I had him under my care and supervision for at least another couple of weeks, even if he does wake up and recover some more." She surveyed Remus for a moment, a faint frown on her face, "I would also like to keep a closer eye on you for a while as well. When was the last time you had a proper meal?"

Remus sighed, he should have known this would happen, he had had this exact conversation with Molly Weasley only this morning. "Yesterday lunch." Poppy narrowed her eyes at him. "I'm sorry but most food makes me want to vomit if I catch the smell of it or even if I see it. Anyway, whatever I do eat just comes back up eventually."

Poppy ran a hand tiredly down her face, "All right, ok, I give up with you. But I am surprised that Molly Weasley hasn't forced something down your throat yet."

Remus smiled slightly, "Oh she has, but like I said, it doesn't stay down." He glanced over at Sirius' unmoving form. "Do you mind if I stay with him tonight?"

"No, no, go ahead. It's against my best judgement at the moment concerning your pregnancy, but by all means, go ahead." Said Poppy in a long-suffering voice. She had liked Remus ever since she had been told of his lycanthropy when he started Hogwarts as a timid eleven-year-old, but he really didn't do much to help himself. Though as far as she knew, he had never been pregnant before so maybe that was part of the reason for why he wasn't looking after himself.

Remus smiled, "Thank you, Poppy." After the matron retreated to her office, muttering irritably to herself, Remus went and sat down in the chair next to Sirius' bed.

There was an Order meeting due to start very soon but Dumbledore already knew where Remus was and had said that the pregnant werewolf need not attend because he should be resting. And for once, Remus decided to take the old Headmaster's advice and not attend the meeting, he figured he could find out what was discussed from one of the Weasleys or from Dumbledore himself tomorrow.

He gazed at Sirius and noticed there definitely were changes in his lover's condition, there was more colour in Sirius' face now compared to a few days ago when he was almost deathly pale. Remus also noticed that Sirius didn't seem to be unconscious, he just seemed to be in a deep sleep. The dark haired man moved a little every so often, his mouth would twitch every now and again and at one point while watching him, Remus noted a faint a frown line appear between Sirius' eyebrows.

Must be having a nightmare…poor thing. Thought Remus, he leaned back in the armchair and continued watching his lover. He just hoped Sirius would wake up while he was here, he wanted to hear that voice again and see those mischievous grey eyes or hear that bark of laughter again.

They had spent far too long apart while Sirius was in Azkaban and Remus didn't believe his innocence and the werewolf refused to let anything else come between them now. Especially something to do with that psychopathic cousin of Sirius'.

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Meanwhile the children at Grimmauld Place were hiding upstairs, they had just heard the voice of someone that they had not expected, especially considering he should have been in Azkaban. The four school bound teenagers had been joined by Fred and George Weasley again, but neither of them had any of their _Extendable Ears_ as Mrs Weasley had made damn sure they couldn't hear anything.

"What do you think this means?" Questioned Harry frowning, "I mean, he's a Death Eater. He tried to kill us and he's in the Order's Headquarters…what the hell is wrong with Dumbledore?"

Hermione sighed exasperatedly and shook her head; "Don't you see?" Harry, Ron, Fred and George all shook their heads. Ginny on the other hand looked quite thoughtful and Hermione guessed that they were both probably thinking along the same lines. "This is just a hunch, but do you think perhaps that maybe Lucius Malfoy is a spy as well? I mean, we know Snape is, there's no doubt about that but I'm guessing that Mr. Malfoy is deeper into Voldemort's-for heaven's sake you lot…I think he's deeper into _Voldemort's_ circle than Snape."

Ginny nodded in agreement, "Exactly. He could probably get far more information than Snape ever could and from what I can tell, he's probably far more convincing as a Death Eater. I bet he's never given You Know Who a reason to doubt him."

Ron folded his arms and scowled, "He tried to kill us in the Department of Mysteries."

Hermione rolled her eyes, "Actually, he was trying to bargain with us to start with…remember he even yelled at Bellatrix Lestrange for wanting to attack us and get that thing."

"And if he's a spy that would explain why he's in the Order's Headquarters, _boys."_ Finished Ginny matter of factly. "…What was that thing anyway? I mean, it must have been important, right?"

Harry looked up from where he had been staring at the foot of his bed to see everyone looking at him, "What? What makes you think I know what it was?"

Ron snorted, "Dumbledore obviously wanted to tell you something, Harry, and we guessed that it was about the _weapon."_

Harry sighed and nodded; "Fine…it was a Prophecy." He got a few raised eyebrows. "A prophecy to do with Voldemort and I…_ "Neither can live while the other survives"_ is what I can remember about it."

"You're kidding." Said George; he didn't look too convinced at the moment.

"I am _not_ kidding." Replied Harry sharply. "I wish I was but I'm not. Dumbledore told me the prophecy was made the night he interviewed Trelawney for the Divination job."

Hermione raised her eyebrows again; "Trelawney made that Prophecy." She stated disbelievingly.

"Yes. It was her first real prophecy, apparently."

Fred arched an eyebrow, "You mean she's made more than one true prophecy?"

Harry nodded, he knew he wouldn't be able to keep this all a secret forever. "The day of our Divination exam in third year, she made a prophecy while I was there…about Pettigrew escaping and going back to serve his Lord…and it turned out to be true, didn't it?"

"Guess so."

They all lapsed into silence for a moment before Ginny spoke up again.

"How do you think Sirius is doing?"

Harry shrugged, "Who knows? I wish they'd let me go see him."

Hermione frowned slightly, "I never saw or heard Remus come back from seeing him, you think he's still there?"

"Could be."

Harry perked up a little, "That's a good sign right? I mean, if he's missing out on the Order meeting to stay with Sirius it could mean he's recovering, couldn't it?"

"It could."

George frowned and looked at Hermione and Ginny, "Why were you two so quick to defend Lucius Malfoy?"

Hermione and Ginny glanced at each other and giggled.

"Oh dear god…" Groaned Fred, "You're sick."

Ginny snorted, "Hey, its not our fault he's good looking."

Hermione shook her head, a grin on her face. "No, not our fault at all."

………

Remus had fallen asleep around midnight, his arms folded on Sirius' bed and his head resting on them. His lover hadn't woken up during the few hours he was awake, which had upset him a little. But it was the next morning now and Remus started to wake up feeling very relaxed and content, he felt it was probably due to whoever was running their fingers through his hair. He yawned and lifted his head, blinking his eyes blearily until he realised he was gazing into the amused grey eyes of his lover.

"Sirius…"

Sirius smiled slightly and kept his hand in Remus' hair, "Good morning."

Remus sat up properly and got the crick out of his neck, "H-how long have you been awake?"

"About an hour." Replied Sirius; he dropped his hand from Remus' hair and to his lover's neck, which he began to caress lightly. "Or long enough for Pomfrey to force some potions down my throat anyway…she said you've been here all night."

Remus nodded, "She told me yesterday that you'd woken up briefly, the night before…I was hoping it would happen again while I was here."

Sirius coughed into his free hand before looking back to Remus; "Well I'm awake now, much to Snape's displeasure."

Remus rolled his eyes and smiled, "You've been awake for an hour and you've already annoyed him?"

Sirius shrugged nonchalantly, "Would you believe me if I said he started it?"

"No, I wouldn't." Remus moved forward and kissed Sirius lightly on the lips. "I'm glad to have you back."

"I knew you would be."

Remus rolled his eyes again and hugged Sirius as gently as he could, so that he didn't touch any of his lover's injuries.

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A/N: Yey! He's awake!

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Next Chapter: Sirius is back at Twelve Grimmauld Place again and he doesn't know about Remus' pregnancy yet.


	4. Our Baby

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The Black Line Continues

Disclaimer: I don't own very much at all.

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Thank you too: _Shadow Cat17, frk-werewolf, MishapsErrors, Tanya J Potter, the-mpreg-spirit, CountingSheep123, Lucy Grey, AffectedMangoO, HappyDappyDrunk, Miss Anonymous hp, Legolas19, Lunaris, Sweet Mercy, Shinigami, ThouandI, Jadwiga, Moon Glaze, Makalani Astral, Summer and Hobey-ho._

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MishapsErrors: At the moment I don't think there will be any Harry/Draco in this story, mainly because I don't like the pairing but I may be persuaded to write it in.

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Lunaris: Sorry, the _Italics_ were there more out of habit than anything.

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Shinigami: Severus was so _gleeful_ about Remus being pregnant because he didn't think Sirius would wake up, so ultimately Rem would have to raise the baby alone and suffer. And of course, Severus not liking the Marauders would want to see them suffer. As for Andromeda, I mainly put her in with Bellatrix and Narcissa because we don't know too much about her. We know she was Sirius' favourite cousin and that she married a Muggleborn, but that's about it. So she could easily be prejudiced against werewolves for all we know, as a lot of people in the wizarding world are.

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If I missed anyone out then I'm sorry, but thank you!

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Chapter 4:_ Our Baby_

"Are you sure there's nothing you want?" Asked Remus after Sirius had settled down in his bed at Twelve Grimmauld Place. "No drink or anything?"

"Remus, sit down and shut up for a while." Ordered Sirius, Remus had been fussing over him ever since he had been brought back to Twelve Grimmauld Place this morning. It had been sweet to start with but now it was just getting a bit irritating considering it was eleven in the evening. Sirius had always been rather independent; he didn't really like it when other people did things for him but Remus always used to ignore that.

Remus sighed and sat down on the bed next to Sirius, "Sorry…" he reached out and tucked some of Sirius' long hair behind his ear. "Old habits die hard, you know?"

Sirius nuzzled his head into Remus' hand and smiled slightly, "I know…I love you."

Remus leaned forward and brushed his lips gently against Sirius', "I love you too." And he did, possibly even more than he used to. He had nearly lost Sirius twice now and he was carrying the man's baby as well. "Do you want me to stay?"

Sirius grinned slyly, "Of course."

Remus rolled his eyes, "To sleep, Sirius."

"I knew that."

Remus smiled, "I'll be back soon." He kissed Sirius again and then he left the bedroom.

Sirius sighed and settled down on his side under the bed covers, he curled up and closed his eyes. He had been seriously against coming back to Twelve Grimmauld to recover from his injuries, one reason being that he hated it here and he had had to spend the first sixteen years of his life in this hell hole. The other reason being that he was still sick and tired of being a prisoner, first in Azkaban and now in the house he had inherited after his mother had passed away. Of course, everyone said it was for his own good and protection but they didn't understand. If he stayed locked up much longer he felt he would become a prisoner inside his own mind as well as these walls.

On top of that, everyone had been acting mighty strange around him since he had come back to the house this morning. Seven times he had been told _'Congratulations',_ congratulations on what? Surviving his psychopathic cousin's torment? Being held prisoner again? It confused him to no end, and when he had asked Remus why they kept saying that the werewolf had looked pleasantly curious, which was Remus' facial expression for _'I know something you don't know'._

Also, when he had attempted to go into the Drawing Room to get a book to read while he was meant to be bed ridden, Remus had dragged him away before he had been able to enter the room. His birthday was the last day of August so he thought that maybe they were going to throw him a party, but he felt that was very unlikely as he wasn't the most pleasant of people to have around at the moment.

…

"Is Sirius all right?" Asked Molly curiously when Remus had entered the kitchen for a drink.

Remus nodded, "Yeah." He poured himself a glass of water. "He is rather confused, mind you. He's unsure of why everyone keeps saying _congratulations_ to him." He gazed pointedly at the few people at the kitchen table.

Tonks raised her head from the Daily Prophet she was reading; "Oh…you haven't told him?"

"No I haven't." Replied Remus; he drained his glass of water. "And it would be nice if he didn't find out from someone other than me, so please, try not to say anything else."

Molly smiled, "I'll make sure they don't, Remus."

"Thank you, Molly." Remus flashed her a charming smile before heading to the door. "Goodnight."

"Night Rem."

"Goodnight."

"Sleep well."

Remus left the kitchen and went back upstairs; he crept quietly passed the portrait of Sirius' mother so as not to wake her up again, he really couldn't be doing with her making a racket right now. They still hadn't figured out how to get her portrait off the wall, even Dumbledore had had a go and he couldn't either. When Remus had asked him Dumbledore was fairly certain dark magic was probably keeping the portrait there, so he would ask Severus or Lucius to have a go at getting rid of it next time either of them was at the Headquarters, the same for the Black Tapestry.

When he got back to Sirius' room he could hear his lover snoring quietly, so he carefully got into the bed carefully so as not to wake Sirius and extinguished the lamps with his wand. He cuddled up behind Sirius and draped an arm over the dark haired man's waist.

Though Sirius had been conscious for about the last week, too much activity was quite exhausting to him because he was so weak from his injuries. That's why Remus had been a little annoyed that he was wandering around the house all day, he knew Sirius had only been doing that to prove he wasn't an invalid and he could look after himself. Maybe he could look after himself but Remus was nearly as stubborn as he was when it came to certain things, when his lover was sick or injured for instance, the werewolf refused to let Sirius do things for himself.

Before Sirius had gone to Azkaban the two had argued over silly little things like that, they had nearly broken up over it once because they couldn't agree to disagree.

Remus sorely missed those times, when they were young and they didn't have much to worry about, he knew Sirius missed his life from all those years ago as well, before Azkaban and James and Lily's deaths. But now Remus couldn't help but look ahead to the future, when hopefully the war would be over, Voldemort would be dead and he and Sirius would have their own little child to love and protect.

Remus soon forced himself to stop thinking; he pressed a kiss to the back of Sirius' neck and closed his own eyes for sleep.

………

Remus awoke the next morning to find himself alone in the big bed in Sirius' bedroom; he sat up blearily and gazed around the dimly lit room. It wasn't like Sirius at all to leave him alone in bed in the morning, the Animagus always woke up first and when he did he always waited for Remus to wake up before he even attempted to get out of bed.

He lay there for a while staring up at the ceiling before he realised there was an obvious absence of morning sickness today. His pregnancy usually never failed to wake him up at sunrise so he could throw up and he felt suddenly worried because it hadn't happened today.

Remus rolled out of bed and headed into the bathroom, he made a mental note to ask Molly if that was normal when he went down for breakfast in a little while. After all, if anyone knew about pregnancy, it would be her.

…

Sirius in the meanwhile had decided to go and poke around in the Drawing Room while Remus was still asleep. He still didn't know what it was in this room that Remus didn't want him to see; it had to be something big though, didn't it? Throughout his snooping though, Sirius had quite conveniently not gone anywhere near his family tree, so he was still absolutely none the wiser about Remus' pregnancy.

………

It had been nearly three days now since Sirius had come back to the Order Headquarters to continue his recovery, and as far as Remus knew, his lover was still completely in the dark about his pregnancy. Though Sirius was giving him some suspicious looks now and constantly questioning his so-called _odd_ behaviour.

__

"You've been acting mighty strange Rem, are you sure you're all right?"

"You feeling all right, Remmie?"

__

"Are you sick? I just heard you throwing up…"

But two days before the children went back to Hogwarts; Sirius finally realised something rather big.

"Remus?"

"Mm."

Sirius sat down on the bed where Remus was reading a book, he gazed suspiciously at his lover as he posed his question, "Why didn't you transform this full moon?" He watched as Remus' eyes widened slightly and the werewolf mouthed silently. "Does it have something to do with what you've been keeping from me?"

Remus bit his bottom lip and sighed, "Yes…" he closed his book and put it on the bedside table before finally looking up at Sirius' curiously suspicious face. "…I was rather hoping you wouldn't notice, but it has everything to do with what I've been hiding from you."

"Are you going to tell me now?" Questioned Sirius frowning slightly. Remus had told him everything ever since he had first found out his friend was a werewolf, so why had he been hiding something now?

Remus nodded, then much to Sirius' confusion, he took one of the dark haired man's hands and placed it on his abdomen and covered the hand with his own. "I'm pregnant, Siri." Sirius' grey eyes widened in shock. "Two months pregnant." He watched as Sirius gazed silently at his stomach for a few minutes before he started to get a little worried. "…It'd be nice if you said something, Sirius…"

Sirius finally shook his head and blinked a couple of times before he looked back up into Remus' worried brown eyes, "Ar-are you sure?"

Remus gave a small smile and nodded, "I'm positive…"

Sirius didn't appear to register what Remus had said for a moment, but then he took the werewolf by surprise by pushing him down onto his back and catching his mouth in a passionate kiss. When Sirius finally pulled away he gazed at Remus lovingly and stated quite plainly, "You're carrying my baby."

Remus smiled up at him and kissed him on the corner of the mouth, _"Our_ baby."

Sirius gazed at him with his head tilted to the side in a way reminiscent of Padfoot, "Our baby…I like the sound of that…"

Remus lifted his arms and slipped them around Sirius' neck, "Am I right in thinking you like the idea of having a child, then?"

Sirius grinned and kissed him again before resting his forehead against Remus', "You know I've always wanted a child…with you…"

"That's just as well then." Said Remus smiling.

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A/N: Yey! Happiness! It probably won't last…just thought I should say…

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Next Chapter: Remus is four months pregnant. Sirius has doubts about having this baby during the war.

When I finish this sentence this chapter will be exactly two thousand words long.


	5. Having Doubts

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The Black Line Continues

Disclaimer: I don't own incredibly much, but I can wish.

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Thank you to: _frk-werewolf, the-mpreg-spirit, Summer, Ginny-and-Draco-fan, HappyDappyDrunk, Sweet Mercy, Legolas19, Miss Anonymous hp, Queen Vampyre Akasha, CountingSheep123, Kuri Raikou, ThouandI, Sarahamanda, Hobey-ho, Goddess of Gorgeousness, The all might and powerfulM, Lunaris, Makalani Astral, Jadwiga, Moonglaze, mizukimarr910, Sasami Tombo, xbreakawayx and Johnny-Depp-Luv._

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HappyDappyDrunk: My Microsoft Word automatically capitalises things like 'Asked' or 'Questioned', well it does most of the time. But I am trying to change that now.

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The-mpreg-spirit: Yes you did review and I did thank you last chapter.

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Ginny-and-Draco-fan: I can't keep to writing one story at a time that's why I have so many of them.

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If I missed anyone out then I'm sorry, but thank you for reviewing!

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This will probably be a rather short chapter.

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Chapter 5:_ Having Doubts_

It was now the end of October, Twelve Grimmauld Place was empty except for Sirius, Remus, Kreacher and Buckbeak and the werewolf was now four months pregnant. But it wasn't all fun or peaceful in the house, it was the thirtieth of October which meant that tomorrow would be the anniversary of James and Lily's deaths and Sirius was feeling quite depressed.

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It was getting very late at night when Remus went downstairs to find Sirius, he had been having a lay down upstairs as he had been up and about all day after following Madame Pomfrey's order to exercise. But without his lover beside him Remus didn't think he'd be able to sleep.

When he found Sirius, his lover was sitting at the kitchen table staring almost unseeingly into the fire; the dark haired man was so deep in thought that he hadn't even heard Remus come into the basement.

"Siri?" Remus tentatively put his hands on Sirius' shoulders when the other man didn't acknowledge him.

Sirius jumped when he felt the gentle hands on his shoulders, he hadn't realised he wasn't alone anymore. He turned his head to see Remus watching him in concern. "Hey…shouldn't you be sleeping?"

Remus frowned and ran his fingers through Sirius' thick, dark hair; "I'm not tired. Are you all right?" He moved to sit down in a chair next to Sirius but he found himself being pulled onto his lover's lap and gently kissed.

"I was just thinking…" replied Sirius quietly; he gazed into Remus' curious brown eyes. "…Nearly fifteen years exactly since that rat bastard betrayed James and Lily…I think I'm still trying to come to terms with it…"

Remus slipped his arms around Sirius' neck and felt Sirius' arms go around his own waist, "You never really had time to mourn though, did you?" he replied quietly.

Sirius rested his head on the smaller man's shoulder and sighed, "No… That's not all though." Remus pulled away slightly and gazed at him. "The day before it happened, Jamie and I had an argument…about you."

"Oh Siri…"

Sirius sniffed, "All because I was too stupid to see the truth. I mean, I know now why you kept disappearing without a word but I didn't back then…and James and Lily tried to make me see and I refused to believe them." He looked at some point passed Remus' shoulder. "I stormed out after we argued and I said I might come back a couple of days later to check on them… I was such a fucking idiot."

Remus used his thumbs to wipe the tears away from Sirius' eyes, "Yes you were…but we all suspected each other…" he hugged Sirius again. "I can't imagine how you feel if that was how you last saw them alive…I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to bawl your eyes out on my shoulder either."

Sirius managed a weak smile before pressing his face into the crook between Remus' neck and shoulder.

The two stayed like that, hugging on the chair, for nearly an hour. By the time they finally pulled apart it was around one in the morning.

"Do you feel a bit better now?" asked Remus, as he ran his fingers through Sirius' hair.

Sirius shrugged, "A little…there's still something else I wanted to talk to you about."

Remus shifted a bit so that he was now sitting astride Sirius' legs, "Well if you're not tired then we can talk now."

Sirius smiled grimly and sighed, "Its about this baby…" he noticed Remus' expression instantly turned to one of worry. "Don't get me wrong, Remmie, I do want this baby. I want nothing more than to have children, especially with you. But…I just never wanted to have a child in the midst of a war; I'm not asking you to abort it that's the last thing I want… But what if something happens to us? I mean, I nearly died at the Department of Mysteries, what would have happened then? If I had died I would never have known you were pregnant…" he had one of his hands on Remus' waist and the other on the small bump of his lover's abdomen. "I know we're both safe here and that Harry's relatively safe at Hogwarts but I'm afraid, I'm afraid for our futures…for this baby's future…"

Remus placed his hands over Sirius' and chewed his bottom lip for a moment before speaking, "I'm afraid to, Siri, I've been wondering what we're going to do ever since I found out I was pregnant… I'm just trying to take it day by day, I'm not going to try and predict the future or something, and as much as you love him I don't think I want to put all of my faith into one teenage boy.

"Right now I think I just want to hide out here until it's all over…no matter how long it takes." He gazed into Sirius' worried grey eyes. "I guess we'll just have to take it how it comes. There's not much else we can do, is there?"

Sirius shook his head slowly, "I guess not." He brushed his lips against Remus'. "I feel like I haven't been saying this enough, but I love you."

Remus smiled slightly, "I love you too, Siri." He pulled Sirius into a tight embrace and pressed a kiss to his lover's neck. "Shall we go to bed?"

Sirius sniffed and nodded, "Yeah…let's go to bed."

The two soon headed out of the kitchen and up to their bedroom for what turned out to be a rather restless night's sleep.

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A/N: Short and probably not my best, I know, but I will make it up to you all soon. Updates may become a bit less frequent over the next month or so, as I have my final exams, but by the beginning of December I will be on my two-month summer holiday so there will be plenty of time for me to write.

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Next Chapter: Somebody thought to be dead is brought to Grimmauld Place. Harry floos. Remus will be six months pregnant.


	6. Positive Affect

**The Black Line Continues**

**Disclaimer:** I don't own incredibly much.

**Thank yous:** _The all mighty and powerfulM, Sarahamanda, ThouandI, Makalani Astral, CrazedLunatic, CountingSheep123, Will's Girl, Hobey-ho, Jadwiga, MoonyPadfootJr, Celi, frk-werewolf, Sasami Tombo, Shinigami, Goddess of Gorgeousness, kuroneko89, Moonglaze, xbreakawayx, Dortha, we3, pen, Padfoot n' Moony, and Aurora Enkeli Medeis._

**ThouandI:** James and Lily did die on October 31st, Remus and Sirius started talking about what happened on the 30th.

**CrazedLunatic:** Yup, I am reposting the Potter/Black Romance, some bits will be changed though.

**We3:** Sirius was referring to something else, he knew Rem was a werewolf but Remus was disappearing more often than just at the time of the full moons back then.……………………………………………………………………………

**Chapter 6:**_ Positive Affect_

"Your sixth and seventh years are very important, Harry, you shouldn't be flooing us in the middle of the night."

Sirius glanced over his shoulder to Remus who was sitting at the kitchen table with a bowl of ice cream before looking back to Harry who's frowning head was in the fire. "Ignore him, he's always been like that-"

"You're going the right way for a castration, Black."

Harry snorted with laughter at the look on his Godfather's face; "Not scared are you, Sirius?"

Sirius narrowed his eyes at the sixteen-year-old; "Of course I'm not, Harry. Anyway, what have you, Ron and Hermione been up to?"

"Not much," replied Harry, "Hermione's been forcing us to do our homework-"

"And so she should."

Harry raised an eyebrow slightly at the bit of Remus he could see from the fireplace, "And we've been succumbed to the usual torment from bloody Malfoy, you know, mudblood remarks, jibes at me having no parents… Of course, he does shut up when you insult his mother, or when we mention that his dad was in Azkaban."

Sirius smirked, "You know, if you want, I can give you some dirt on Narcissa-"

"Sirius, _stop_ encouraging him."

Harry snickered, "You are such a wimp, Snuffles."

"Shut up, you." Sirius scowled at Harry for a moment. Remus had been like this for the last two days, picking at everything Sirius did and telling him off. He knew his lover was pregnant and he couldn't really help it but it was really starting to get on Sirius' nerves. "Anyway, what are you doing for the Christmas holiday this year?"

"Can we all come to Grimmauld again?" questioned Harry hopefully.

Sirius shrugged, "If you want to," he looked over his shoulder to Remus. "Do you mind Rem?"

"No…" Remus yawned, "Just warn everyone that I might be forced to bite."

Sirius looked back to his Godson, "Yeah tell them that. But otherwise sure, the more the merrier, right?"

Harry smiled, "Thanks Sirius. I should probably go to bed before Hermione comes back down and drags me away."

Sirius nodded, "Yeah, do that. If we don't hear from you beforehand we'll see you at Christmas."

"Yup. See ya!"

"Goodnight Harry."

After Harry's head had disappeared, Sirius forced himself back to his feet and tried to get the feeling back into his legs. He turned to Remus and watched silently as his lover made a task of finishing every bit of his double chocolate ice cream. Despite Remus' sudden perpetual crankiness, the werewolf could not be more gorgeous to Sirius at the moment. He had gained weight, which seemed to be doing him a load of good and his skin had taken on a glow as well.

Remus looked slowly up from his bowl, "What?"

Sirius smiled slightly and sat down in the chair opposite Remus, "You look absolutely gorgeous."

Remus frowned, a tint of red had come to his cheeks, "You're just saying that because you don't want me to make you sleep in your mother's bedroom with Buckbeak."

Sirius shook his head, "That is not why I am saying it… Its just I've never seen you look so well and healthy, or beautiful." He watched in amusement as Remus bowed his head to hide the blushing. Remus had never been good at taking compliments, especially ones from Sirius. "Its true and you know it, Rem." He got up and went around the table to sit in the chair next to Remus who was still trying to hide his blushing face. "I'm glad this baby is having such a positive affect on you."

Remus finally lifted his head and looked to Sirius, "It seems to be having a positive affect on you too, I don't remember you being this caring and considerate before Azkaban."

Sirius smiled slightly and gently rubbed Remus' back, "I was young and stupid before Azkaban." He pressed a kiss to Remus' temple. "But now I'd like to think that I have matured, at least a little bit."

Remus smiled and ran his fingers through Sirius' longish dark hair, "You have, I think it was Harry that brought that on though." He kissed Sirius briefly on the lips. "Who was that that flooed earlier?"

"Dumbledore," replied Sirius, "He said he was going to come here in the morning with someone that we would probably love to see…or something cryptic like that."

Remus frowned slightly, "Right…" he stifled a yawn into his hand.

Sirius stood up and pulled Remus up and rested his hands on the pregnant man's waist, "Come on, you need to rest, and I'm tired."

"Ok." Remus allowed Sirius to lead him out of the kitchen and quietly upstairs to their bedroom.

………

It was late the next morning and Sirius and Remus were in the kitchen at Twelve Grimmauld Place, waiting for Dumbledore to turn up with this mysterious person that they were supposed to want to see.

"Who do you reckon it is?" asked Remus curiously, before putting Tabasco sauce on his bacon and eggs.

Sirius wrinkled his nose in disgust at what his lover was doing, "I have no idea…you're actually going to eat that, aren't you?"

Remus gave him an innocent look, "What's wrong with it?"

"Nothing." Lied Sirius, he knew if he said anything else it would probably just upset Remus and then he'd be in trouble and he would have to sleep in his mother's room. "I'm sure Dumbledore will be here soon."

Almost as soon as he had finished his sentence they heard the front door open and close, it wasn't quite loud enough to wake Sirius' mother up but it was loud enough for the two men to hear down in the basement. They could hear the murmur of Dumbledore's voice, possibly talking to whoever the mystery person was.

"Ah Sirius, Remus, you're both looking well." said Dumbledore upon entering the kitchen, the _mystery person_ was standing behind him so the other two couldn't quite see who it was. "Now, first of all, Sirius, in a matter of days, you will be free."

Sirius choked on his coffee, "What? How? What happened? Has the rat been caught?"

Dumbledore shook his head, "No, Wormtail has not been captured." Sirius slumped his shoulders. "However, with Severus and Lucius' help, we have been able to track down one person that knows exactly what took place that night." He smirked slightly at the confused looks on both Sirius and Remus' faces. "Voldemort never killed James that night-"

Sirius dropped his mug of coffee on the floor.

Dumbledore continued, "He was injured badly in the explosion of the house and was taken away by a few Death Eaters before you arrived, Sirius."

"Wha…" The question Remus had been about to ask disappeared from his mind when Dumbledore stepped to the side so that they could see the mystery man.

Standing there, arms around himself, was James Potter. At only a glance, Sirius and Remus could tell James was only a shadow of the man that he used to be. His black hair was still as messy as ever, but he was pale and very thin, his hazel eyes had a haunted look to them and he looked extremely nervous.

"James…" Sirius' voice was barely above a whisper as he surveyed the best friend that he had believed was lost.

Dumbledore looked between the three men, "Now, James has been through a lot these last few years, but I will leave it for him to tell you both what happened when he feels up to it." Remus nodded, his brown eyes were glued to Sirius who was still watching James in shock. "Also, Harry does not know yet. I will tell him before he comes here for the Christmas break. But now, I must go."

"I'll see you out." Said Remus. Dumbledore nodded and he followed the old Headmaster out of the kitchen, leaving Sirius and James to stare each other down. "Um…will he not talk?"

Dumbledore stopped at the door and looked back to Remus, "He is still very weak from his ordeal and extremely frightened that he may have to go through that again. But he will talk as long as he doesn't have to start a conversation, it would just be best to ask him questions and perhaps, reassure him that Harry is doing well." Remus nodded, a frown on his face. "Also, it was Lucius that found out about James still being alive, he was also the one that broke into the dungeon James has been kept in to get him out. So you may be having a few visits from Lucius in the next few days, so far it is only Lucius and myself that James has spoken to."

Remus nodded slowly and then realisation spread across his face, "Lucius and James were…" he trailed off at Dumbledore's nod. "Oh god, Sirius is going to die of shock."

The twinkle came back to Dumbledore's eyes, "Aye, he may. I think perhaps you should go and check on them."

Remus nodded again, "OK. Bye."

"Goodbye, Remus."

Remus stood there at the front door for a few minutes after Dumbledore had gone, he could barely believe this was happening. For fifteen years they had believed both James and Lily were dead, and now the truth that James had never died in the first had come to light… It was almost too good to be true…

Remus sighed and rested a hand on his enlarged belly for a moment before he decided to cast a Concealment Charm on himself, he felt certain James probably hadn't noticed his pregnant belly and he didn't want to shock the poor man. After casting the charm he placed a hand gently on his magically flat stomach before heading back to the kitchen, where he found James leaning against one of the counter tops surveying the passed out Sirius on the floor.

"What happened?"

James looked up at him startled before looking back to Sirius, "I think it was all too much for him…"

To Be Continued…

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**A/N:** Finally! An update! Not that its much but…yeah… Sorry it took so long!

**Next Chapter:** Sirius, James and Remus talk. Lucius makes a proper appearance. Harry is informed before leaving the school for the holidays.


	7. An Explanation Part 1

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The Black Line Continues

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Disclaimer: I do not own incredibly much.

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Thank yous: _Elmindrea-al'Thor, the-mpreg-spirit, RoschLupin-Black, Squishy Gamgee, Sweet Mercy, im no muggle, Alia, Celi, Aurora Enkeli Medeis, CountingSheep123, iamtherealmaverick, Moonglaze, Geminidragon, White Pencil, Sasami Tombo, ThouandI, NalanaSpinderOfSouls, Yuki Bombay, Padfootslittlegirl, Tama-Kitsune, and Goddess of Gorgeousness._ ****

Elmindrea-al'Thor: You will see this chapter what was between Lucius and James.

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Aurora Enkeli Medeis: I'm with you on the Malfoy fangirl thing!!

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Geminidragon: Nothing has happened to Wormtail. As for the other questions, you'll have to wait and see.

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Sasami Tombo: I swear I am trying to correct my punctuation and stuff, but sometimes I forget, and although it sounds like a lame excuse but my MSWord does instantly capitalise things. I think I'm starting to improve…

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I am amazed at the feedback I am getting for this story!

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Chapter 7:_ An Explanation: Part 1_

It was the afternoon of the day that James had arrived at Twelve Grimmauld Place, and Sirius had finally regained the ability to speak again. He, James and Remus were now sitting at the kitchen table, a drink in each of their hands and a plate of cake and biscuits in the middle of the table. James still looked incredibly nervous but he seemed to be more relaxed now than he had been upon his arrival. The most likely reason was probably because he felt he could trust both Sirius and Remus.

Sirius took a big gulp of his coffee, scolding his mouth and throat in the process, not that he cared that much. "What happened, mate?"

James sighed and put his cup down before leaning back in his chair and folding his arms, "…Where do you want me to start?"

"The beginning would be preferable," replied Sirius, he felt the need to bring a little humour into this rather morbid moment.

James gave his old friend what could have been a tiny smile; "Well…" his voice was a bit raspy. "It was about ten that Halloween night when I first realised something was wrong…it wasn't long after that when Lily and I both felt the wards fail… He blew the front door in while Lil was heading upstairs to get Harry, I tried to hold him off…I don't know why he didn't just kill me." He sniffed and ran hand down his tired looking face. "He stunned me…when I finally started to come back around, I heard Lil shouting and Harry crying…"

Sirius and Remus could tell that James' voice was starting to break.

James continued, "The next thing I knew, there was a scream and then this massive explosion…" he had a faraway look in his eyes. "I tried to get up but I was hit with a lot of rubble…then everything just went silent, I couldn't move so I just lay there wondering what the hell had happened… Then I heard Harry start to cry again, I called out to him but he just cried more…"

"Harry started to quieten down again, then I heard voices, laughing and talking. I remember one of them was…" James gulped as if he were going to be sick. "One of them was female…"

Sirius clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles gave off audible cracks, "Bellatrix."

James nodded shakily, "…I didn't realise they were Death Eaters at the time, so I called out. It was only when they had gotten to me that I realised my mistake…they laughed and told me what that rat had done. They dragged me out of the rubble, bound and silenced me…then they dragged me into cover and forced me to watch when you, Sirius, turned up. I tried to get your attention but I couldn't make a sound and they had me bound too tightly to make much movement. I don't remember much else from the next few days because they got sick of me struggling to get away, so they knocked me out… But I woke up a few days later in a dungeon somewhere…"

Remus glanced at Sirius and saw that his lover was silently fuming, not that he could blame him, then he looked back to James who was staring at the table, his thin shoulders shaking slightly. "What happened after that, James?"

James chewed his bottom lip for a few moments before looking back up at Remus and Sirius, "…The Death Eaters started…they started torturing me weekly…" he jumped when Sirius slammed his fist on the table. "Their numbers lessened and I found out that some of them, Bellatrix included, had been sentenced to Azkaban for torturing the Longbottoms…" he ran his fingers through his unruly black hair, it was flecked with grey and white now. "I-I don't remember that much…I just tried to block it all out…

"Then about three weeks ago, I was visited in the middle of the night by a Death Eater that I hadn't been hurt by before…and he helped me escape from the dungeon." James took a sip of his cooling coffee. "…When I woke up in the Hogwarts Infirmary a couple of days later, I found out that it had been Lucius that had rescued me-" he was cut off by Sirius' surprised voice.

"Malfoy?!"

"Sirius. Sit down."

James smirked a little at the wounded look on Sirius' face as he obeyed Remus and sat back down. "Yes, Lucius Malfoy… I owe him and Severus my life." Sirius gaped at his old friend. James ignored Sirius' incredulous look and continued with his story. "Anyway…after I woke up, I was told about your Azkaban sentence, Si, and what Pettigrew had done to escape you…and how you escaped that hell hole."

Remus felt like a bit of an intruder at the moment, though he always had done when Sirius and James had been in each other's company. At school he had gotten on with them both tremendously well when they were separated, but when the two got together he had always become quite quiet and had let them do all the talking.

James frowned slightly, "I still don't know all the details though, Dumbledore only gave me a rough generalisation of what you two have been through the last…what, fifteen years?"

Sirius' eyes were downcast now and he spoke quietly, "Did he tell you anything about Harry?"

James nodded slowly, "Not too much, but enough… I know he's come face to face with…with Voldemort five times since that night… I know about his best friends, Ron and Hermione, right?" Remus nodded in affirmation. "And I also know that he's had to grow up with Lily's sister… I just wish I had been there for him, he probably resents me now for not being around when I have been alive this whole time."

Remus shook his head, "He doesn't know yet, Dumbledore said he'd tell him before he came here for Christmas." Sirius nodded. "And he does _not_ resent you, well…perhaps a little bit after he saw something in Snape's pensive but…"

"What did he see?" asked James curiously.

Sirius sighed deeply, "Everyone had always been praising you to him, you know, saying how great a wizard you were and how kind and everything, and to some extent it was true," James smiled at the teasing joke. "But, last year, Dumbledore said that Harry needed Occlumency lessons to stop him sharing Voldemort's thoughts and feelings, and he gave Snape the job of teaching him. And during one lesson, I think Snape had to go and attend to something leaving Harry alone in his office, and of course being the curious kid he is he took a look in Snape's pensive. He saw that day of our Defense Against the Dark Arts O.W.L, and he saw just how horrible we were as kids…he also saw how much Lily despised you back then as well.

"He flooed us afterwards to ask about it." Finished Sirius.

"What did you say?"

Sirius looked to Remus and then back to James, "We just told him that we were idiots back then, you and I. I guess he was wondering just how true the praise he had been fed about you really was. I'm still not sure how he feels about the fact that Lily used to hate you, though."

James sniffed and nodded, he looked like he was very close to tears. "…I still don't know why she gave into me…I wasn't exactly the best husband to her."

Sirius furrowed his eyebrows and frowned, "Yes you were, you loved her."

"I did…" James gazed thoughtfully at the plate in the middle of the table. "But I wasn't _in_ love with her."

"What?"

Remus bit his bottom lip and looked between the two dark haired men. He had always wondered just how faithful James had been to his wife, while they were at school James had cheated on a few girls so he had definitely been curious. But after what Dumbledore had let slip this morning, Remus had been wondering whether James had been cheating on his various girlfriends with Lucius Malfoy, it definitely made sense.

James sighed and looked straight into Sirius' curious grey eyes, "I was having an affair, Sirius," he saw the other man's eyes narrow. "I was in love with someone else, and that is all I am going to say on the subject until I am up to arguing with you and Harry about it." He could see from the look in Remus' eyes, that the brown haired man knew exactly whom he was talking about and he was thankful that Remus could get some control over Sirius at the moment.

Sirius opened his mouth to say something that was probably going to be insulting towards his oldest friend, but Remus lay a hand on top of one of his own and he knew that was his cue to close his mouth again. Normally he would ignore it when Remus tried to get some control over him, but James was here, weak and nervous, and Remus was also six months pregnant with his baby.

………

That night, after Remus had shown James to his room, the pregnant werewolf made his way to his and Sirius' bedroom to see if his lover was still steaming over everything they had been told today. Though he already knew Sirius would be, after all, his best friend had been imprisoned just as he had for most of their adult lives, both of them unable to look after Harry.

When he entered the bedroom he found Sirius lying on the bed, staring up at the ceiling in thought, "Siri?"

Sirius stayed exactly how he was, but he sighed, "I can't believe it…" Remus sat down on the bed next to him. "I thought I'd had it rough in Azkaban, but Jamie…tortured every week for fifteen years and because of what? The only person those bastards could blame for their so-called Lord's downfall was that Pettigrew…yet they made James and Harry suffer, and Lily was killed…" he could feel the tears stinging at his eyes but he refused to cry just yet. He sat up and pulled his knees up to his chest. "It's just so unfair…"

Remus ran his fingers through Sirius' hair and put an arm around his lover's shoulders, "I know it's not fair, but we just have to be there for them both, and help James recover… He's been through a great ordeal, you're his best friend, he needs you."

Sirius sniffed and looked to Remus, "But you're pregnant, you need me."

Remus smiled slightly, "Up until today I would have made you put me first, but now that James is here and I've seen just how…different he is, and how scared he is, I really think you should be there for him. He probably needs you far more than I do at the moment."

Sirius shifted so he was leaning back against the headboard of the bed, then he pulled Remus on to his lap and kissed his pregnant lover gently on the lips, "I'm glad you're so understanding."

Remus smiled, "Well who else was going to take you on?"

Sirius snorted, "Thanks." He patted Remus' stomach. "Why did you hide the baby?"

Remus leaned into Sirius' body; "I didn't want to shock James."

"Fair enough." Sirius pressed a kiss to Remus' neck and then his lips before speaking again. "…How do you reckon Harry will take this news?"

"I don't know," replied Remus thoughtfully. "It's hard to tell, he could be happy about it, or he could resent the fact that his father has been alive this entire time without him knowing. I'm not going to assume anything if it involves that boy's mindset and feelings."

Sirius sighed and nodded, Remus was right, though he usually was. "Well, we'll just have to wait and see if we get a floo call off him after Dumbledore tells him. I would like to be there while he's told but then he might start to resent me for not letting him know as soon as Jamie turned up."

"Its understandable." Remus moved off Sirius' lap to sit on the bed beside his lover. "Shall we get some sleep, or do you want to talk more?"

Sirius gazed at the opposite wall for a moment before replying, "Might as well try and sleep…If I need to talk later on in the night, I'll just wake you up."

Remus smirked, "How considerate of you."

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To Be Continued…

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A/N: I know, its cruel to leave it there, but I'm tired and sick, and I thought that you'd rather I make this into a two parter rather than have to wait another month for an update.

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Next Chapter: Harry is told. Lucius visits.


	8. An Explanation Part 2

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The Black Line Continues

Disclaimer: I do not own incredibly much, though I wish I did.

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Thank yous: _RoschLupin-Black, ozumas girl, Aurora Enkeli Medeis, CountingSheep123, DragonHUnter200, Sweet Mercy, KawaiiWhiteWolf, Moonglaze, xbreakawayx, Alia, Sasami Tombo, catseye348, Anastasia Snape, NuTHoUSe, Sassy Aloo, NalanaSpinderOfSouls, Elphin, Serena Black, Goddess of Gorgeousness, crescomellonnin, catseye348, Skyla Gerdes, Marblez, moongirlSelene99, Shinigami, Emerald princess3, AnnF,_ _SBRL forever, _and _Dortha._

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DragonHunter200: Thank you! I'm glad you like this mpreg fic!

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Sasami Tombo: No need to apologise, I've been questioned about it before. I try not to leave things like that in, but sometimes I over look them.

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Catseye348: Its fan fiction for a magical story, anything can happen, especially when a slash writer gets a hold of a keyboard.

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Sassy Aloo: Now, now, don't spontaneously combust on me **:-P**

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Elphin: You have just hit my biggest problem on the head. I am terrible with rushing things; I do it in all my fics whether deliberately or not. I can't help it.

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Ok, I think a couple of people misinterpreted James's affair a little bit. James cheated on Lily with _Lucius_, whom he was with before he proposed to Lily. He has never, and will never sleep with either of his best friends. Also, this chapter takes place the day after the end of last chapter.

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You are all very overdue in an update, and I am very sorry you have had to wait so damn long. I could go into my excuses (which are all real and plausible) but you probably don't really care so long as I update.

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Chapter 8:_ An Explanation: Part 2_

It was early the next morning when Sirius woke up, he wasn't normally an early riser but he figured that the anxiety about telling Harry of James's presence was what woke him up. He turned his head to the left and saw Remus was curled up on his side, his back to him.

Sirius lifted his head and propped it on a hand so that he could watch Remus sleep, his lycanthropic lover looked so peaceful when he was sleeping. He looked as though he had absolutely no care in the world, and it was times like this that Sirius wished he had been there for his lover all these years. It wasn't just he and James that had suffered since Voldemort attacked that Halloween night, Remus had as well, if not through torture or Azkaban, he had still been all on his own. Remus had deserved having someone there to love and care for him, when he was down or when he had a terrible full moon night, sometimes Sirius thought that Remus deserved much better than him as well. Someone that really did love Remus would not have gotten himself thrown into Azkaban for twelve years…

Sirius's thoughts were cut off by Remus stirring.

"Mm…you know I don't like it when you watch me sleep," mumbled Remus, he was always so eloquent with words even when he had just woken up. Unlike Sirius who would just scowl and grunt for a couple of hours after he had woken.

Sirius smiled and pressed a kiss to Remus's pale neck, "I know, but if you weren't so damn cute when you're asleep then I probably wouldn't." He rested a gentle hand on the werewolf's growing belly after his lover had turned onto his back. "What do you reckon? Boy or a girl?"

Remus moved Sirius's hand to where he could feel the baby was at the moment, then he rested his own on top, "I don't know…I'm not sure I want to know until its born, what do you think?"

Sirius bit his bottom lip lightly for a moment, his eyes focussed on Remus's belly for a few moments before finally answering, "It would be good to know beforehand so that we could get a nursery ready…but I do like the idea of being surprised as well. I wouldn't mind having a girl though," Remus gave a small smile. "I mean, remembering the trouble James and Lily had with Harry when he was born…it might be easier… I need a little princess to spoil, as well."

Remus lifted his head and pressed a kiss to Sirius's chin, "You're going to be a good dad, you know that?"

Sirius smiled, "So you've been telling me," he kissed Remus lightly on the lips. "Mm, love you."

"Love you too, Siri," They kissed again briefly before Remus spoke again. "I think we should get up."

"Mm, probably should," said Sirius before giving Remus another quick peck and getting out of bed. "Even I don't think I want to trust James in a kitchen alone, if he's up already."

……

Half an hour later Sirius was washed and dressed for another day of hanging around Twelve Grimmauld Place, he headed down the stairs and to the basement kitchen while Remus was in the shower. He entered the kitchen and found James sitting at the table gazing mournfully at a mug filled of what smelt like coffee. "Morning, Jay." He sat down opposite James frowning a little after his old friend failed to reply. "James?"

James finally looked up at Sirius, as though he had only just realised the man was there, "What?"

Sirius furrowed his eyebrows, "What's wrong?"

James chewed his bottom lip for a moment, he averted his gaze from Sirius's and went back to staring at his mug, "My son hates me…"

Sirius was beyond confused now, where was this coming from? "Why would you think that? How can he hate you if he doesn't know you?"

"He saw me," replied James quietly, he glanced up momentarily and caught Sirius's look of confusion. "…He flooed here a little while ago, Siri, looking for you. He saw me."

"And?"

James folded his arms on the table and put his head down on them, "He was shocked, as you would be when your father's supposed to be dead, then he looked angry, and then he cut the connection before I could say anything." Sirius opened his mouth to speak but James started talking again after a few moments of silence. "I barely know the kid and already I'm a terrible father, I knew I was never cut out for this…"

Sirius got up and went around the table to sit down next to James, "That is not true," James snorted. "Jay, you were the worst of us two, if you aren't cut out for parenting, what chance do I have?"

James lifted his head a little, a hint of a smile on thin face, "How far along is he?"

"About six months," replied Sirius proudly, though he tried not to show it considering James was so upset. "Anyway, maybe Harry was just shocked, I know I would be if I was in his position." James put his head back down on his arms and groaned. "Do you want me to talk to him? Or to get Dumbledore to?"

"Please."

Remus came into the kitchen at that moment, a Concealment Charm in place to hide his growing belly, "Morning…what's wrong?"

James stayed silent so Sirius took that as his cue to give Remus an answer, "Apparently Harry flooed earlier looking for me, and he saw James, seems he was quite angry about it."

"Oh…"

Sirius nodded, "I'm going to try and talk to him."

"Maybe you should just let him stew for a while," replied Remus thoughtfully. "You know what he's like."

"I wish I did," mumbled James into his arms.

………

By that afternoon, Sirius was all alone in the kitchen of Twelve Grimmauld Place, sitting at the table doing some paperwork for the Order. James had retreated miserably to his room before lunchtime, distraught at the thought that his son may not like him at all now, and Remus had gone to take a nap, as Madame Pomfrey had been ordering him too at this point in his pregnancy.

Everything in the old manor was quiet except for the scribbling of Sirius's quill and the crackling of the fire, until the doorbell rang. Luckily though, they had finally figured out how to permanently silence Mrs. Black's portrait so at least she didn't scream every time a loud noise was made now. Sirius grumbled and got to his feet, his peace was ruined, he took his time in getting to the front door, once he did reach it though, it took a few minutes to undo all the bolts and chains, as well as the magical locking mechanism that Dumbledore had installed.

When he finally got the heavily guarded door open, Sirius had not been expecting to see the man on the other side of it, "What are you doing here?"

Lucius Malfoy smirked and spoke in his usual arrogant drawl, "Polite as always, I see."

"Cut the crap, Lucius, what do you want?" replied Sirius none too kindly. Despite the loathing he felt for the blond Death Eater, he had to let Lucius into the foyer due to security reasons for the Order's headquarters.

Lucius raised an elegant eyebrow, clearly amused at the hostility of his wife's cousin; "I am here to see James, if you must know."

Sirius narrowed his eyes suspiciously, "Why?"

"I thought you were one of the more intelligent ones, Sirius," Lucius quirked his eyebrows, which earned a dark glare of the other man. "Where is he?"

Sirius stayed determinedly silent, he had never liked Lucius, and he thought he probably never would. Though he had a fair idea as to why Lucius was here to see James, he just hoped that he was wrong, for Harry's sake at least. It was then that he saw Lucius slowly starting to remove his wand from the end of his cane; he wilted, "Second floor. Third door on the left."

"Thank you," Lucius pushed his wand back into his cane, and headed off up the stairs, leaving Sirius standing in the middle of the entrance foyer.

Sirius watched the blond man disappear at the top of the stairs before sighing and heading back down to the kitchen. When James was more up to it, he was _definitely_ going to get his old friend to talk.

…

James was curled up on his bed, staring blankly at the wall when he heard a gentle knock on the door, "Come in," he sat up so that he could see who it was, he was expecting Sirius or Remus, but he got a much more pleasant surprise. "Lucius."

Before Lucius could say anything, he found that he had an under-nourished grown man clinging to him, "Nice to see you as well," he held James to him and rubbed the other man's bony back. "What's wrong?"

James pressed his forehead against one of Lucius's shoulders, "Harry flooed this morning and he saw me, he didn't look happy at all, and then he cut the connection before I could say anything." He had missed these hugs while he had been kept prisoner by the remaining Death Eaters, although Lucius had never been that forthcoming with them in the first place. The man had always had a problem with showing affection; in fact, Lucius had been making great progress with his shows of affection just before the Halloween attack. They would probably have to start all over again now.

"I take it he hadn't been informed yet, then?"

"No. Remus said we should just let him stew for a while before trying to talk to him."

"Lupin's usually right," replied Lucius, he pulled away from James a little bit so that he could see the shorter man's face. "Is that all that's wrong?"

James nodded his head meekly, "Can you stay with me for a while?"

Lucius frowned a little, "Black wants to kill me, you know that, don't you?"

James gave a small smile, "I won't let him. Anyway, I haven't told him, he's probably suspicious…Remus knows though, least I think he does."

Lucius pressed a kiss to the side of James's head; "I can't stay for long."

"As long as you're here for a little while, at least."

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A/N: FINALLY! Another update! This chapter was vastly different to how I had originally planned it, but as I forgot my original plan and the fact that it was hard to write (still is), that is what you get. Sorry if it disappoints.

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Next Chapter: _Long overdue Christmas chapter. _Harry is refusing to leave Hogwarts for Christmas. Why is Lucius injured? Sirius and Remus find out the sex of their baby.


	9. Holiday Check Up

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The Black Line Continues

Disclaimer: I do not own incredibly much.

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Thank yous:_ Argaildax, Little Black Poko-chan, EsScaper, ShyQuill, ozumas girl, iamtherealmaverick, Moonglaze, Wilting Rose 08, Goddess of Gorgeousness, rikkiairora, mizukimarr910, Anastasia Snape, S.c.ou.s.er.4.li.f.e, orlin, im no muggle, crescomellonnin, Andromeda Malfoy-Potter, Hannio, YamikiofAnime, Shinigami, Aia Angle, Makalani Astral, _and _frk-werewolf._

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EsScaper: I'm glad you like it, if you don't normally read mpreg!

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rikkiairora: No, no, I think you misunderstood me. Lucius will be injured _this_ chapter, not the last one.

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Ai Angel: No, there will be no DM/HP slash, mainly because I don't like Harry and I think Draco deserves better. I also don't want everyone to be gay.

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Sorry for the delay!

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Chapter 9:_ Holiday Check Up_

Remus Lupin was just over seven months pregnant now and he had never felt better. He was feeling happy, healthy and in love, his baby was growing well and he was going to find out the sex of his and Sirius's soon to be born child today. It was also Christmas which had always put him in good spirits when he and Sirius had been together. Not to mention the fact that James was back and doing much better than he had been, despite his misery over Harry; he was also eating more now because Molly Weasley had turned up again and felt the need to force it to him. Sirius was much happier now as well, the idea of becoming a father within the next couple of months was doing him some good.

Sirius was leaning against the workbench in the kitchen of Twelve Grimmauld Place where Molly was making them lunch, the day of Remus's check up with Madame Pomfrey, "Rem, don't you think you should rest a little?"

Remus gazed at his lover with slightly wide eyes, "No…why, should I? I don't feel the need too." It was then that the doorbell rang. "Oh, that should be Poppy!" he rushed off out of the kitchen as fast as his pregnant body would move.

Sirius chewed his bottom lip lightly, "As much as I love him, he's starting to scare me a little bit." James snorted in amusement.

Molly glanced at the dark haired man out the corners of her eyes, "Its sweet really, I haven't seen Remus this happy in quite a long time."

Sirius smiled, "I hope it stays this way then," he said before heading out of the kitchen to join Remus for his baby check up. He headed upstairs to his and Remus's bedroom where the pregnant werewolf and the Hogwarts matron already were.

Remus was on the bed; his pregnant tummy exposed as Madame Pomfrey sat on the edge of the bed next to him examining him. "So um…how exactly do men give birth?"

"You sound nervous, you aren't having doubts, are you?" replied Poppy curiously.

Remus shook his head and glanced at Sirius before he looked back to the medi-witch, "No, it'd be a bit pointless now, I can't exactly back out. But I just…I'm ignorant to the workings of it and…yeah…"

Poppy smiled as she took her wand out of her medical bag, "Obviously, it will be different to a female labour as men do not have the correct attachments," Sirius smirked and sat down next to Remus. "The only way for a man to deliver a baby is through a Caesarean Section, which will be done by myself when you are ready to have this baby."

Remus nodded hesitantly, he didn't like the sound of that but he knew now that it was the only way, "Will it be painful?"

Poppy shook her head, "As this will be a scheduled caesarean, I will give you the wizarding equivalent of a regional anaesthetic which will keep you pain free during the procedure and for a few hours afterwards. After that I will prescribe you some daily pain relief for afterwards for a couple of weeks." Remus nodded, he knew he was gripping Sirius's hand quite tightly right now but he didn't care, he was a little worried. "Don't worry, Remus, it is perfectly safe. I have done it many times before."

Sirius stroked the back of Remus's hand with his thumb, despite the discomfort he was feeling, "Wh-what will happen if he has the baby a few days before a full moon? I mean…that would worsen the recovery, wouldn't it?"

"That is a possibility, yes," replied Poppy seriously, she waved her wand over Remus's swelled abdomen. "If that does happen to be the case then I will be wanting to keep you in the infirmary afterwards, Remus, so I can keep an eye on you. But judging by the lunar charts and your perceived due date, I don't think we are going to have that problem."

"Oh good…"

Poppy nodded, "You and the baby are both doing absolutely fine, Remus, I don't foresee you having any problems with remainder of your pregnancy. Now, would the two of you like to know your baby's gender?"

Remus looked up at Sirius, "Do we?"

Sirius gazed at Remus's pregnant belly for a few moments before looking back into the brown eyes he loved so much, "I do."

Remus smiled a little before looking back to Poppy, "Yes, we do want to know."

"Very well," Poppy held the tip of her wand over Remus's belly and muttered a charm. "This won't take a moment, there should be a glow – pink for a girl or blue for a boy."

Remus and Sirius had their eyes fixed on the werewolf's stomach as it starting glowing from Madame Pomfrey's charm. Remus smiled and looked up at Sirius, "I guess you're going to be getting your little princess."

…

"Do you think we'll be able to go back to the Headquarters for Christmas?" said Ron at lunchtime the same day of Remus's check up. "Ow!"

Hermione had just kicked him under the table, "Watch what you say, Ronald. But yeah, I think it would be fun. I wonder how Remus and the baby are."

Harry was scowling at his lunch, he had been all right today until Ron had just mentioned Twelve Grimmauld Place, "Speak for yourself, I'm not going back there."

Hermione and Ron glanced at each other, identical frowns on their faces. They both knew of Harry seeing James Potter when he flooed Sirius a month ago, of course, they didn't really understand how Harry felt but they both felt he was being quite unreasonable about this.

"Harry," started Hermione timidly. "Don't you think you should at least give them a chance to explain?" Harry glared at her. "Or you could ask Dumbledore…there must be a very good reason why they didn't tell you right from the off."

"I don't care," replied Harry putting his knife and fork. "Sirius said he would stop lying to me or hiding the truth, and he's gone and done it again. I don't care what his or anyone else's reasons are for keeping my dad's life a secret from me." With that he stood up and stormed out of the Great Hall.

Ron sighed, "Well that went well."

"No kidding," replied Hermione a frown still set firmly on her face. "But still, I think Harry needs to find out, and even if he doesn't want to go back for Christmas we should bound and gag him, and drag him there." Ron had his eyebrows raised in amusement. "What? I think he deserves a little bit of happiness, don't you? If that involves meeting his father then so be it."

Ron couldn't deny it, he knew Hermione was right but he didn't know how they would be able to talk Harry into going back to his godfather's house for Christmas.

………

It was the evening before the students of Hogwarts could go home for Christmas, and Harry found himself sitting in Dumbledore's office with his godfather.

"I am sure you know why you are here, Harry," said Dumbledore regarding the sixteen year old over the top of his half moon glasses, his expression one of the utmost seriousness.

Harry sat in front of the Headmaster's desk, his arms folded and a dirty look on his face, "Yeah, because no one bothered to tell me my father is alive. Were you ever going to?"

"Harry," scolded Sirius, no matter how upset Harry was feeling he had no right to talk to the Headmaster like that.

Dumbledore raised his eyebrows slightly, "Harry, we have only known of James being alive for a few months ourselves. The reason you were not informed sooner than you found out is because James is still very fragile, emotionally, mentally and physically. He has been through a lot over the last fifteen years, we felt it would be best for him to recover a lot more before the two of you were introduced."

"Why is he like that though?" asked Harry quietly, he still didn't want to believe what he was being told. He would have preferred knowing right from the start.

Sirius and Dumbledore shared a tired look, and then Sirius launched into telling Harry everything that James had shared with Remus and himself. About his capture, his time being tortured and held by the remaining Death Eaters, about Malfoy senior and Snape saving him, and about his recovery so far.

…

Meanwhile back at the Order Headquarters Remus and James were down in the kitchen, trying to waste away time until Sirius came back to report on how Harry took all the truth about his dad.

"James, don't worry too much," said Remus as soothingly as he could. "I'm sure he'll understand once Dumbledore and Sirius have talked to him."

James leaned back in his chair and started nervously twisting his hands in his lap, "I hope you're right…I hope he comes here tomorrow, but I'm worried…"

"I don't blame you, I think I would be worried as well," replied Remus as he nursed his cup of tea. "Anyway-" he was cut off by the doorbell ringing. "That could be Sirius…"

"Why would he ring the doorbell?"

Remus got to his feet, his pregnancy was still concealed because he preferred looking like that, mainly because he was starting to think he looked fat. "He doesn't have to, being the owner of this place, but knowing him he's probably forgotten how to get in or something."

James nodded in agreement about Sirius, he sighed and gazed at the mantle shelf above the fireplace after Remus had gone. Now that he was feeling much better he just wanted to see his son, to talk to him, and to apologise for not being there for him all this time. It would be Christmas soon; he hadn't spent one with Harry since his son five months old…

__

"James!"

James was snapped out of his thoughts, Remus sounded alarmed. He got to his feet; maybe there was something wrong with the baby… But by the time he got up the kitchen stairs and to the entrance hall, he found that there was nothing wrong with Remus or the baby. On the other hand, there appeared to be something very wrong with Lucius who was lying unconscious on the floor with Remus crouched down next to him.

"Oh god… What happened?"

Remus shook his head, "I don't know, I opened the door and he stumbled in…and collapsed… James, floo Hogwarts, get Dumbledore and Poppy Pomfrey."

James nodded but he stayed standing where he was, his eyes fixed on the blond on the floor, he had barely registered what Remus had said to him.

"James. Go!"

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To Be Continued…

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A/N: I'm cruel, I know. Another two parter, I am so sorry. But at least I've updated, and I hope it makes up for my lack of updating recently. If not, then I offer you cookies!

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Next Chapter: A continuation of this one. What happened to Lucius? Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny turn up at the HQ for Christmas. James and Harry meet. Sirius and Remus discuss names for their daughter.


	10. Grimmauld Christmas Part 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own incredibly much.

**Thank yous:**_ Irresistible, the-mpreg-spirit, orlin, ryanzraindrop, Moonglaze, Madame Maya, Dortha, Makalani Astral, Goddess of Gorgeousness, VampiricSheWolf, ladyoficyblueyes, ozumas girl, RoschLupin-Black, SilverGlitterSprite, Aurora Enkeli Medeis, barbarataku, iamtherealmaverick, frk-werewolf, Naphatarie Rose, YamikiofAnime, Hannah, crescomellonnin, Jessica Goldberg,_ _lost angel92, Sapphire Manzanereas, AkiretheGoddess, chaeli.mee., GSFE, ImRelatedToRaulFernandez, vytiri, kuroi-shin, Lurel, Dadaiiro, Saiamye Nakatashi, Stacey, Heng Huo, QueenNarca, KatanaKira, shonen ai fanatic 14, DracoDormiens7, Slasharific, chivels-life, BeautifulButDeadly, Irish-Mexican, sola-bola, Moonsign, FOXANBU, KuroFaiStorm, MC, goldenlass, Seylin, xkidrogue, STEPHiE, Rem10124. _

**Author's Note: **Boy, do I suck hard. Three years since an update... I certainly won't blame the above thank yous if you don't bother continuing your reading of this fic. Honestly, it's been so long that I really don't know where I was going with this fic, I'm just glad I had the foresight to put 'next chapter' summaries at the end of each chapter.

Let's see if this doesn't turn out completely awful.

Oh, and this is so completely **AU** now (not that it wasn't before, but now that the last two books are out I can see that I'm way off with all the events).

* * *

**Chapter 10:**_ Grimmauld Christmas_

Late the next morning Sirius headed up the stairs to the second floor of the Order Headquarters, a tray with breakfast and coffee on it in his hands. When he reached his destination, he supported the tray on one arm and knocked on the door; he didn't wait for an answer before he opened it and went into the dimly lit room. In the room, he found his best friend, James, half curled up on a bed intently watching the prone blond man under the covers.

"James?"

James jumped when he heard his name being spoken, he hadn't actually noticed anybody had entered the room; he forced himself to tear his eyes away from Lucius Malfoy's unconscious form to see Sirius watching him worriedly. "Hey…"

Sirius placed the tray on a trunk at the foot of the bed before dragging a chair over to the bed and sitting down, "Have you slept at all?

James shook his head, "I tried…but I was afraid that if I did that he might stop breathing or something…"

Sirius frowned a little, "Well, even if you don't sleep, you should eat something. I brought you some breakfast," James gave a grim but grateful smile. "Did Poppy tell you what his injuries were?"

James ran a hand down his tired face, "Yeah… 'Definite evidence of prolonged exposure to the Cruciatus Curse'," he quoted. "Broken bones, cracked ribs, you name it… I'd really like to know what happened…"

Sirius chewed his bottom lip at the moment, he wasn't fond of Lucius at all but he could see that this was really upsetting James. "Remus thinks that perhaps Voldemort has found out about Lucius's spying…I mean he's nowhere near as good at Occlumency as Snape is, as loathed as I am to admit that… Or of course, Death Eaters could have turned on him or something."

"That's what I was afraid of," replied James, he turned his worried hazel eyes back to Lucius. "Did Dumbledore say anything before he left last night?"

"Only that as soon as Lucius wakes up one of us should question him about what happened. Who did it? Why? How did he get here when he was so badly hurt?"

James nodded sullenly, "If he could have waited until after Christmas to get himself half-killed, it would have been a bit better…"

Sirius furrowed his eyebrows, "Why do you say that?"

"Harry will be here tonight, and I want to spend time with both of them… He resents me enough as it is, I would hate to think what would happen if he found me in bed with Lucius Malfoy, of all people."

Sirius nodded in agreement, "If you're going to sleep in here, I think your best bet would be to not let Harry in here."

James nodded and turned his gaze back to Lucius once more; he reached out a hand to run it through the tussled blond hair, "I'm sorry."

Sirius furrowed his eyebrows, "What for?"

James smiled slightly and looked back to Sirius, "I know you hate him, and I know you don't agree with this relationship-"

"James," said Sirius, cutting his friend off. "You don't have to apologise. You can't help who you fall for, right?" James shook his head. "I guess if you can see passed the bastard that he's been, then I can too."

James smiled a little, "Oh, he's still a bastard, just not to me."

"I suppose I can live with that," Sirius gazed at the unconscious blond for several moments before getting to his feet. "I'll leave you to it."

James nodded; he glanced over his shoulder as Sirius opened the door, "Pads?"

"Mm?"

"Thank you."

Sirius furrowed his eyebrows, he wasn't quite sure what James was thanking him for, but he gave a shrug, "Don't mention it."

* * *

"Harry, you need to give him a chance."

Harry glared at Hermione, "Why should I? He's been alive _all_ this time and I was left to think he was _dead!"_

"Everyone was left to think he was dead," replied Hermione, she was not going to back down, especially not now. As far as she was concerned, Harry was being completely unreasonable. "You heard what Dumbledore and Sirius told you, he was locked up by the Death Eaters and _tortured."_

"They could have told me when he was rescued."

"He was weak and scarred – mentally, physically, and_ emotionally._ Do you honestly think he could have coped with a petulant teenager when he was first taken to headquarters?" Hermione sighed; Harry was refusing to look at her now, his gaze fixed on the train compartment window instead. "Give them a chance, Harry."

* * *

"Emily."

"Hm, what?"

Remus snorted quietly, "Good to know you reply to girls' names as well," Sirius frowned at him, confusion written all over his face. "For our daughter, I like the name Emily."

"You mean you don't want to keep with the traditions of our families?" asked Sirius innocently as he went to sit down on the drawing room couch next to Remus.

"If you can think of a decent star or Roman mythology name then I'll consider it."

"I like Cassandra."

Remus wrinkled his nose, "I have an Aunt Cassandra. I'm fairly certain that she's evil, she was at Hogwarts in the same year as Voldemort."

"Is she the one that used to hex you to punish you?"

"One and the same."

"Lyra. It's a constellation."

Remus let his eyes scan the Black Family Tapestry as he considered the name, "No one in your family has had that name before?"

"Not that I'm aware of," Sirius turned to face Remus and brushed his fingers through the pregnant werewolf's hair. "You know, as much as I loathe my family, our daughter having a similar name wouldn't be the end of the world."

"I know, but... Even without a strange name she's still going to have a certain stigma attached to her," Remus rested his head against the back of the couch and closed his eyes. "Your family, your time in Azkaban, me being a werewolf... What if the other kids pick on her because of us?"

"Hey..." Sirius pulled Remus gently into his arms. "She's not even out of the womb yet and you're already worrying," Remus made a little noise, much like the whimpers he sometimes did when he was asleep; it was awfully reminiscent of the wolf that Sirius couldn't help but smile. "I have _no_ doubt that this war will be over _long_ before she turns eleven and heads off to Hogwarts. I see no reason for her to be picked on, even with my family background. If it really bothers you, she can take your name?"

Remus sniffed and raised his head; there was something else on his mind as well, and he was yet to voice that concern to Sirius, "What if she's a werewolf?"

Sirius would be lying if he said he hadn't thought about that as well, but as far as he was concerned his little girl could have any number of problems and he wouldn't love her any less. Remus, on the other hand, he just _knew_ that Remus would forever hate himself if their daughter contracted his lycanthropy, "She'll still have us. She certainly won't have to go through that alone. But what is the chance of her actually being born a werewolf?"

"Madame Pomfrey said there's a twenty percent chance it could happen."

"Which means there's an _eighty_ percent chance that it _won't."_

"You're usually the pessimistic one."

"Mm, but someone has to pick up the optimistic slack, because you've taken over my job."

* * *

Twelve Grimmauld Place was soon buzzing with activity once more as Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny arrived from Hogwarts, along with several other Weasleys and members of the Order. Upon arriving, Hermione and Ginny spent an awful lot of time with Remus, asking about the baby and making sure he was comfortable; it had gotten to the point where Remus had had to question just _why_ they were doing this.

_"Because..." started Ginny, trying to think of a better reason than 'boys are stupid'._

_Remus raised an eyebrow, "Because what?"_

_Hermione sat down in an armchair with a book, "Because Ron is being a nuisance, Harry is being, well, _Harry,_ and he has a lot on his mind, mostly about his dad. Mrs Weasley will make us help her in the kitchen and she knows full well we'll only get in the way," she gave a shrug. "It's safer here with you."_

_"Unless Sirius is getting territorial, of course," added Ginny._

_Remus laughed quietly, "Don't worry about him, he is otherwise occupied."_

* * *

"James, he's your _son."_

James sighed and rubbed his forehead, "I _know._ Let's just leave the big meeting until tomorrow, okay?" he glanced up at Sirius who was frowning at him. "You said he still looked upset, right? So, let him settle in for the holiday and then I'll talk to him."

"Do I take that as you declining the offer for dinner with everyone else?"

James nodded, "I want to see him _alone,_ without everyone else meddling. And I need to think about what I'm going to say..."

"Are you going to tell him about Mal-_Lucius?"_

"Should I?"

"Well... If you don't and he thinks something is being hidden from him then he'll do his best to find out what's going on."

"That's what I thought..."

Sirius sighed, "You'll just have to give him some time. Likely, he'll be really angry about you two if you tell him, but he _will_ get over it. You're his dad, James, and he needs you, no matter how distasteful your choice in men is."

James smiled a little, "I hope you're right."

* * *

**Author's Note:** Yeah, that kinda sucked. I promise I'll try better next time (hopefully it won't take me another three years).

**Next Chapter:** James and Harry meet properly. Lucius wakes up.


End file.
